


The Protector

by flootiger



Category: Tokio Hotel
Genre: Adult Content, First Time, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Twincest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-30
Updated: 2017-04-30
Packaged: 2018-10-25 20:55:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10772259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flootiger/pseuds/flootiger
Summary: Tom has been Bill’s protector all his life.





	The Protector

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHUm3j2enH8) interview and also about 5000 Toll things that have happened during this DM tour, you can probs spot where that inspo'd this fic lol 
> 
> THEY ARE A GIFT TO FANFIC AUTHORS EVERYWHERE
> 
> For my Toll lovers out there :)

_7_  
  
Tom is wide awake.   
  
The shouting downstairs is getting louder and louder and he’s terrified that it will wake Bill. Earlier that night Bill had crawled into Tom’s bed with red eyes and a sob caught in his throat and Tom had instantly scooped his twin up, hiding them both under his duvet and holding Bill close until he’d fallen asleep in his arms.   
  
A door slams downstairs and Tom winces, glancing down at where Bill is curled against his side, his sleeping features still peaceful.   
  
He knows, Tom knows that he’s leaving and not coming back this time and his face contorts into an angry frown. Bill stirs, twisting his fingers tight into Tom’s pyjama top, but doesn’t wake.   
  
As he gazes down at his twin his expression sets into one of determination. If their father can’t look after Bill then Tom will, always and forever. Tom will be Bill’s protector until the day they die.   
  
That night, Tom doesn’t sleep, instead remaining at his vigil until the morning sun rises and Bill wakes up to a new world.   
  
  
_13_  
  
Tom doesn’t understand how anyone could hurt Bill.   
  
Bill is kind and caring and a little crazy but Tom doesn’t think that’s reason enough to hurt his brother. Tom is hurting, too. His heart twists painfully when he sees Bill wince as Tom carefully wipes a damp cloth other his grazed cheek, smudging the eyeliner that Bill had so meticulously painted around his eyes that morning. There is blood on Bill’s knees and on his cheek and there is a dark blue bruise blooming over one of his eyes.   
  
Tom’s own knuckles sting but he ignores the pain, too occupied with trying to repair his twin.   
  
They are alone in the fourth floor boys toilets at school. Bill is perched on the counter looking miserable while Tom is gently trying to clean him up with some balled up toilet roll and the sleeve of his hoodie. He can that see Bill is trying not to cry because he won’t look him in the eye, instead staring intently at where his fists are worrying into the front of Tom’s hoodie, pulling him close to anchor himself.   
  
“I’ll kill them,” Tom promises as he swipes his thumb over Bill’s red-raw cheekbone.   
  
Bill shakes his head and sniffs. “Don’t.”   
  
“I’ll fuck them up then,” Tom says fiercely.   
  
He’d seen red when he saw Bill punched so hard he’d fallen to the asphalt of the school playground with a cry. Within a split second Tom had crossed the tarmac and decked Bill’s attacker, his whole arm vibrating with the force of the hit and the skin of his knuckles splitting. Then he’d whisked Bill away, picking him up off the ground and wrapping a protective arm around his shoulders so he could guide him into the safety of the school building. They had climbed the stairs in silence, Tom’s face stony as he felt Bill quiver against his side until they’d reached an empty bathroom and locked the door on the world. Not for the first time, and not for the last.   
  
Now, he’s standing between Bill’s legs, with one of Bill’s ankles is wrapped loosely around his calf and his hands pulling him closer and closer.   
  
“I hate them all,” Bill says quietly, still looking down.   
  
“We’re getting out of here,” Tom assures him. He means it, he’ll take Bill far away. They’ve never belonged, and Bill has always attracted trouble. He’s beautiful and delicate and their peers don’t seem to understand him, so they hurt him. “I’ll take you away.”   
  
Bill looks up at him then, his eyes swimming with unshed tears. “I know you will.”   
  
The trust in Bill’s almond eyes makes Tom’s throat constrict and then Bill falls forward into his arms, burying his face in Tom’s neck and clinging onto him so hard that Tom almost can’t breathe. As Bill’s little body shakes in Tom’s arms, all Tom can do is vow to never let Bill hurt like this again.   
  
  
 _15_  
  
The angry tears that streak Bill’s cheeks with black eyeliner make Tom’s heart clench with fury. They are holed up in their basement, a fortress of pillows that Tom had built around Bill to protect him keeping their little world muffled and dark.   
  
“Fuck ‘em,” Bill growls and crawls close to Tom in their private cave.   
  
“We’re still gonna make it,” Tom says furiously and Bill throws himself over Tom’s lap and hugs his belly, pressing his face into Tom’s stomach so hard he’s slightly worried Bill won’t be able to breathe.   
  
“I know we will,” comes Bill’s garbled response. “We don’t need them, we have each other.”   
  
Tom thinks they might need a bit more than each other to become rockstars but he doesn’t voice this concern, instead swearing their former record label to the high heavens until he and Bill decide to destroy their pillow fort with such ferocity that they’re soon laughing in a pile of limbs on the floor.   
  
  
_17_  
  
“Are you going to?” Bill gasps.   
  
Tom nods, his whole body shaking with the kind of eager anticipation that only comes with teenage lust. They are in a darkened hotel room, in some city halfway between Spain and France. They’ve been on the road for so long now that Tom has lost track, only really able to focus on his twin and not fucking up any of the more complex chords while they’re rocking out on stage.   
  
He and Bill have become even closer during the 1000 Hotels tour. At first Tom had suspected Bill was homesick, if the number of times he crept into Tom’s bunk were anything to go by, and so he started paying particular attention to him, watching his eating, watching his performances, watching his smiles, his tears, his temper.   
  
Tom had been watching Bill so closely that he supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised when one drunk night Bill had toppled over him on the sofa of the media room and kissed Tom square on the mouth. Fireworks had exploded behind Tom’s eyes that night and ever since they’d been slowly exploring each other, piecing together those final mysteries. It seemed natural, normal, just a sensible step to take.   
  
Now Tom knows almost every inch of Bill’s body, how he mewls prettily when Tom nibbles on his neck, how he arches his back if Tom gets too heated during a make-out session and grabs his pert little ass, how a needy line of pleasure dips between his brows when Tom pushes his fingers into Bill’s entrance.   
  
It’s almost too much every time they become intimate and right now Tom is sure he’s about to implode from the lust pumping through his veins.   
  
“I’m ready,” Bill says breathily, arching off the bed and rubbing their cocks together deliciously.   
  
“Stop,” Tom grits. “I’ll explode.”   
  
Bill smiles dreamily up at him, his long black hair fanned out against the soft hotel pillows and his cheeks flushed a shade of pink that makes Tom’s belly flip hard as he looks down at his perfect twin. His eager cock hangs heavily between his legs and he has to pull his hips back as Bill wraps his legs around him and tries to connect their groins once more.   
  
“I’m serious,” Tom warns, trying to control himself. “Do you know how fucking hot you are?”   
  
Bill tilts his head and bites his lip, blinking wide eyes up at Tom.   
  
“Of course you fucking do,” Tom can’t even bring himself to roll his eyes, not wanting his gaze to leave Bill’s.   
  
“C’mon, Tomi,” Bill says, a needy moan colouring his voice. “Fuck me, please. We’ve waited so long.”   
  
Tom’s arms tremble and he half collapses onto Bill, smashing their lips together in a desperate kiss, tongues immediately tangling and Bill’s breath hitching in surprise and arousal.   
  
This is the hottest thing Tom has ever experienced in his short years and he can barely concentrate on what they both want him to do. They have been guiding each other through this whole exploration but despite Bill’s confident movements Tom knows his brother needs him to take control tonight. It’s his first time and no matter how much he wants this, Tom can see the flash of nerves behind kohl-rimmed eyes and feel the tremor in Bill’s limbs as his spreads himself open and ready for Tom.   
  
He’s going to take good care of his twin.   
  
They break apart and Tom is pleased to see Bill’s eyes hooded in the dim light of the room, dazed and distracted. He gives a quick tug to Bill’s cock and then leans over the side of the bed, rummaging in his hold-all for a small square package.   
  
“Where are you going?” Bill asks and Tom feels the light scratch of his nails on the small of his back.   
  
“Protection,” Tom sits back up on his haunches, nudging Bill’s legs further apart on the bed as he settles between them.   
  
Bill pulls a face and Tom raises his eyebrows. “We don’t need protection.”   
  
“This is non-negotiable,” Tom says, tearing open the blue wrapper.   
  
Bill’s plush bottom lip protrudes and he looks down at Tom through long lashes. “We’re clean.”   
  
“ _You’re_ clean,” Tom corrects.   
  
“So are you,” Bill insists. “You were tested like two days ago.”   
  
“Just in case,” Tom says, leaning over Bill and placing a gentle kiss to his pouty lips.   
  
Before he can pull back Bill’s hands come up to cups his face and holds his gaze steadily. “I wanna feel _all_ of you.” He purrs.   
  
Tom swallows and arousal pools low in his belly. “You will.”   
  
Bill ponders for a moment and then snakes a questing hand between them to wrap slim fingers around Tom’s cock and squeeze lightly. “I suppose. You’re so _big_ , Tom.”   
  
Slutty, seductive Bill is too much for Tom and he groans, dropping his forehead to Bill’s and sucking in laboured breaths of shared air.   
  
“I wonder if you’ll even fit?” Bill licks Tom’s lip ring and arches his back off the mattress. Tom closes his eyes and hears Bill whisper. “Let’s try, hmm? I need you to fuck me good.”   
  
Trying not to short-circuit, Tom pulls back, rolling on the condom and kneeling forward to he is positioned right at Bill’s tiny entrance. With a final glance at his beautiful baby brother who is splayed so wantonly before him on the bed, Tom slowly pushes inside him with a hiss.   
  
“Fuck,” his head swims the pleasure is so intense and he has to press his palms into Bill’s thighs to anchor himself.   
  
He hears Bill groan and glances up to see Bill’s mouth open and his eyes screwed shut, both of his hands have flown up to grab the headboard behind him and Tom can see his chest heaving.   
  
“Bill? Are you ok?” Tom stops moving and fans his hands over Bill’s stomach, stroking soothingly. “Bill?”   
  
Bill nods but his face is still tight with obvious pain. “Keep going.”   
  
“No, I—” Tom starts but Bill’s legs tighten round his hips, locking him in place.   
  
“Do it,” Bill instructs. It’s only when Bill opens his eyes and connects with Tom’s anxious gaze that Tom knows Bill means it, that he’ll be ok.   
  
Slowly, carefully he eases all the way into Bill, trying so hard not to come in five seconds flat. Bill is tight and hot and Tom knows that this is all he will ever need. He already knew he and Bill were forever but by crossing this final frontier they have solidified their future.   
  
Just as his hips stutter forward so he fills Bill entirely Bill’s whole demeanour changes and he tenses, his fingers turning white against the headboard and his back curving with obvious pleasure.   
  
“Can you feel me?” Tom wants to know.   
  
Bill’s eyes are still clenched shut but he nods. “I can feel everything… ohhh, Tom, fuckkkkk.”   
  
Tom pulls back experimentally and jerks his hips forward almost involuntarily, making Bill cry out and cover his face with his arms.   
  
“So fucking big,” Tom thinks he hears Bill mumble then his arms reach for Tom, urging him to come closer. “Fuck me, Tom, fuck me like you love me. Please.”   
  
Desperate, turned-on Bill is too much for Tom and he falls over his twin, burying his face in the crook of his neck and biting the skin there. His hips pound into Bill’s willing body and Bill’s pleased moans fill the hotel room until they are both coming with a yell.   
  
“Oh my god,” Bill mumbles, his post-orgasm words garbled. “We should have done that sooner.”   
  
“Was it good for you?” Tom manages through his panting.   
  
“What do you think?” Bill says, clenching his thighs around Tom and trailing a finger through the come that he’d spurted all over his belly.   
  
Tom grins, drowsy and content. Carefully, he pulls out of Bill, stroking his cheek and giving him a kiss to distract him from the discomfort. Bill shudders a little when Tom leaves his body and his nails dig into Tom’s shoulders but then he’s panting again and kissing Tom again and again.   
  
Not wanting to crush his brother any longer, Tom rolls off him and stares at the ceiling in utter bliss.   
  
“I can’t believe you let me do that,” he tells Bill, turning his head to find Bill’s blinking blissfully at him across the pillow. “Are you ok? I mean…” Tom glances down between them, his eyes trailing over the sticky mess Bill has left on his own stomach and down further. “Down there,” he finishes.   
  
“I’m fine, more than fine,” Bill assures him, taking Tom’s hand and guiding it between his legs. Tom can feel Bill’s little hole, wet with lube. He glances up at Bill as he dips a curious finger inside, just the knuckle and grins when Bill’s eye lids flutter closes momentarily.   
  
“We’re so good together,” Bill whispers as Tom retracts his hand, petting Bill’s thigh instead.   
  
Tom nods in agreement. They are, they are perfect together.   
  
  
_17_  
  
Now that they’re rock stars it’s very hard to protect Bill. Their whole lives are splashed across tabloids full of vulgar lies, and even more vulgar truths. Photos, videos, interviews, their home, their love lives are plastered on the glossy covers of magazines and online forums. It’s not so much the physical hurt that Tom is trying to protect Bill from these days but the emotional.   
  
Bill is a shining light in this crazy life they have chosen together, he smiles and glows for the cameras and their fans and Tom is amazed his brother can continue to face it all with such vitality. Bill was born for this, and Tom can only just keep up.   
  
“They bring up the gay thing again,” Georg says from the tourbus sofa.   
  
Tom jerks his head up. They’d done an interview for an international magazine earlier that week and David had specifically requested they don’t ask questions about Bill’s sexuality, it’s beginning to wear the singer down. The interviewer had sort of complied, asking a couple of seemingly innocent questions but Tom had seen straight through them. He’d tried to divert Bill’s answer, Bill who had so obviously missed the double meanings, always keen to see the best in people, but he'd failed as Bill had launched into an enthusiastic monologue about love and his hopes for the future.   
  
Now Tom is kicking himself, certain the article will have been manipulated to suit the interviewers questions and not Bill’s answers.   
  
“What do they say?” Bill asks, looking crestfallen.   
  
Tom’s heart aches for his baby brother. Bill is curled up on the other sofa in the media room looking small in one of Tom’s over-sized hoodies and a pair of baggy sweats. They had the day off today so his hair is down and his face is natural. Tom thinks Bill looks so young when he's like this, far too young to carry the weight of fame on his shoulders.   
  
“Don’t read it out,” Tom tells Georg, striding over to snatch the magazine from Georg and tossing it into a bin.   
  
Georg opens his mouth but sees the look in Tom’s eyes that tells him to back off. Tom knows their friend doesn’t want to hurt Bill, would never dream of it, but sometimes his bandmates need a little extra coaching. Bill isn’t the precious flower some make him out to be but there is a time and a place and right now Tom needs to help patch Bill up a bit.    
  
With a knowing nod Georg stands and departs, leaving the twins alone in the media room at the back of the bus. Tom shuts the door, sliding the lock into place before turning up the small television so badly dubbed Scrubs fills the silence.   
  
Bill gives him wide eyes and a pleading look and instantly Tom crosses the room and falls onto the sofa beside Bill.   
  
“I’m ok, you know,” Bill says, half-smiling at Tom.   
  
Tom opens his arms and Bill huddles against his side, nuzzling his cheek and crawling into Tom’s space. With feather soft lips Bill kisses the corner of Tom’s mouth and Tom can feel him smile again.   
  
“Are you sure?” He wants to know, hauling Bill as close as possible so they are wrapped around each other like puppies.   
  
“Promise,” Bill says, pulling back to meet Tom’s worried gaze. “You’d know if I wasn’t, I’d probably start shooting up or something.”   
  
Tom frowns, disturbed by that image. “Don’t, that’s not funny.”   
  
“I would never, dummy,” Bill strokes Tom’s cheek affectionately and sinks his fingers into Tom’s dreads, massaging the scalp. “I have you to keep me safe.”   
  
Tom grins at that. “Always,” he says.   
  
Bill’s eyes shine warmly in the dim light of the tourbus and he tips Tom’s head back, kneeling up as he does so he can press his lips to Tom’s as he straddles his lap. Tom’s hands hold Bill in place, not wanting his uncoordinated twin to topple over with the motion of the tourbus as they speed through Italy.   
  
The tabloids can go fuck themselves, Tom thinks vehemently as Bill’s tongue stud flicks against his teeth. They will always have each other and Tom knows this is enough for them both even if he can’t shield Bill from every slur and every jibe from Europe’s gossip-hungry media.   
  
“Love me,” Bill whispers against Tom’s lips. “I need you tonight.”   
  
And Tom does, waiting until they hear the low snores of Georg and Gustav before he opens Bill up with practised fingers and then lifts him easily, both of them gasping as Bill sinks back down onto his lap and he fills his little brother. Moonlight shards over Bill’s features as Tom loves his twin, splaying his palms over Bill’s now bare back and holding him close in a safe embrace until they reach an explosive climax together.   
  
“You always know how to make me feel better,” Bill murmurs sleepily.   
  
Tom glows as Bill clings onto him, both of them breathing hard in the darkness as they heal each other.   
  
  
 _18_  
  
Beside him Bill is fidgeting.   
  
Tom has his eyes closed and is trying to ignore his brother’s bitching. He can hear the slide of the airplane window shutter as it is closed, then opened, then closed again, the creak of Bill’s chair as he shifts uncomfortably and the occasional whine that is issued from his lips.   
  
Tom is beginning to get annoyed.   
  
He cracks his eye and opens his mouth, ready to berate Bill for his restlessness.   
  
Then he sees Bill looking exhausted and irate and he softens a little. “Hey,” he says gently. “You can’t sleep?”   
  
They’re in the air again, this time on the way to America for the first time ever. It’s a long ride to New York and they’re all running on caffeine borrowed energy after months and months of hard work. They don’t mind though, all four of them eager to explore untapped horizons and take over a whole new continent.  
  
“I want to sleep,” Bill hisses, “But the jerk behind me won’t let me close the shutter.”   
  
Tom frowns, peering between their seats to see a beefy red-faced man sitting with his hand on the shutter that is between his row and theirs, as though ready to strike.   
  
Bill huffs and closes the shutter with a final slam, but before he can take his hands away the man has tugged the shutter back open with such force that Bill yelps in alarm and jerks back his hand as though stung.   
  
“Bill?” Tom leans forward to grab his brother’s hand, inspecting it prudently. “Aw, one of your nails has come off.”   
  
“What?” Bill yanks his hand back from Tom and holds his hand close to his face. “Oh no! Natalie spent hours on those!”   
  
Tom is growing angry but sucks in a calming breath. It’s only a nail, Bill can fix it when they land.   
  
Then, the man who’d broken Bill’s nail swears loudly. “Fuckin’ princess fag.”   
  
Tom doesn’t even think, he sits up, reaches behind his seat and punches the man square in the jaw, sending his head flying back with eyes bulging with shock. “Don’t you dare say that shit to him,” Tom growls furiously. “Don’t say anything to him you sick fuck.”   
  
The man blinks puffy eyes in stunned silence and looks away, clearly cowed. Beside him an old lady has her hand over her mouth but Tom ignores her, unconcerned with any of them except Bill.   
  
He sits back down, still frowning, then feels Bill tug on his sleeve. Slightly sheepishly, he glances at his twin who is sitting with his eyes wide and his mouth open.   
  
“Whoa.” Bill says.   
  
“Sorry,” Tom shrugs apologetically.   
  
“Don’t be,” BIll’s cheeks are slightly flushed.  
  
Then his hands are lifting the armrest between them and he is scooting close with an odd, slightly dazed look on his face. When he is inches from Tom’s face he breaks into a wide grin and snorts in unabashed laughter.   
  
“My hero,” he says, giving Tom a teasing flick to the side of his nose with his acrylic-less finger.   
  
Tom chortles, only feeling slightly guilty that he’d just punched someone in the face for breaking one of his brother’s beautiful black nails. Then Bill rubs a subtle hand over his crotch and he forgets to feel guilty for the rest of the flight and all the way to their hotel room in New York hotel, especially when Bill slinks over his naked body on the bed and swallows his dick whole.   
  
  
 _19_  
  
Tom hates that he wasn’t there to protect Bill.   
  
Images of Bill’s car careening off the road and into the highway barrier plague him as he sits wide awake in their Berlin apartment and cradles Bill close on their bed.   
  
“Stop panicking,” Bill says quietly. “I’m fine.”  
  
“What if you weren’t?” Tom’s voice cracks with emotion.   
  
“But I am,” Bill says, squeezing Tom’s waist and huddling closer against his side.   
  
“I knew something bad was going to happen, I fucking knew it,” Tom rants, staring blindly ahead in the pitch dark of their room.   
  
“I know you did,” Bill says and Tom hates how gentle Bill is being with him when it is he who should be looking after Bill.   
  
“I’m sorry, Bill,” Tom’s voice breaks and he has to fight hard to swallow back a sob.   
  
Bill sits up, stiffly, still in some pain from the shock of impact and Tom searches his features in the night. “Tom listen,” Bill brings one hand up to cup Tom’s cheek and brush a thumb over the skin. “I wasn’t hurt, it was scary but it was over in a flash, I barely had time to think about it.”   
  
Tom nods, hearing his brother’s words and trying to calm down. “I wish I was there for you.”   
  
Bill shakes his head and presses his lips to Tom’s. “Don’t, then you might have been hurt.”   
  
“I don’t care, I could have protected you,” Tom says forcefully.   
  
“Tomi,” Bill coos. “I’m fine, I’m safe.” He brushes his lips once more against Tom’s. “Let’s sleep, ok?”   
  
Tom nods and let’s Bill sink down into the covers, still tucked under the wing of Tom’s arm. Tom doesn’t sleep that night.   
  
  
_22_  
  
Since moving to LA the twins have found they can go out without anyone knowing who they are. LA is full of phoneys and freaks and they have built up a small life together where they can let go and truly have fun amongst them all.   
  
No one cares who they are, everyone is either more famous than them or thinks that they are. Tom likes it. There had come a point of no return in Germany and Tom could see no other way of protecting his brother so he’d whisked him off in the middle of the night and landed them in sunny California to start a new life.   
  
And a new life they have found.   
  
It had taken Tom months to realise he could fill the fridge on his own, and a couple of weeks later he coerced Bill out to do the same. They’d settled into almost being a real couple, shopping, cooking, dining together. They’d even taken each other out on a few dates.   
  
Tonight they are out in West Hollywood. It had been Bill’s idea and Tom had gone along with it, happy to have a few drinks with Bill and dance into the early hours. They don’t completely release all inhibition but Tom likes how Bill feels confident enough to grind close to him on the dance floor, guiding Tom’s palms to rest on his slim hips and moving his body close to Tom’s.   
  
It’s hot and sticky in the club and Bill’s breath is sweet against Tom’s lips as he gazes at him through drunk eyes. The heavy baseline cuts right to his soul and he can feel his insides vibrating.   
  
They don’t kiss but Tom knows they are more than toeing the line here, dancing against each other and pressing their bodies close, much too close, but they can’t help it. They need this every now and again.   
  
“Drinks!” Bill suddenly shouts in his ear. His lips press to Tom’s cheek fleetingly and then Bill has darted away, his slim shoulders cutting a line through the dancing revellers.   
  
Tom follows, looping one finger into Bill’s belt loop to keep him close.   
  
“You get them,” Bill instructs as they arrive at the bar. “Bathroom.”   
  
Tom manages to catch the barmaid’s attention pretty quickly and orders a couple of drinks, then pushes his way through party-goers who look just as drunk as he feels. He spots Bill near the bathrooms and elbows a gyrating teen out the way so he can reach his twin.   
  
“No, no thanks, I have company tonight,” he hears Bill saying good-naturedly as he watches his brother wave a dismissive hand at a tall, good-looking brunette. When he notices Bill is backed up against the wall he frowns. The guy is huge and has one hand placed on the wall by Bill’s head, effectively penning him in. Bill is smiling awkwardly, still too polite to overly persistent strangers while Tom learned a long time ago to say fuck off when he wasn’t in the mood.   
  
“Is everything ok?” He asks loudly over the music as he reaches them, pressing Bill’s drink into his hand and standing close enough that he hopes the guy will understand and back the fuck off his twin.   
  
“We’re good, right, babe?” The guy answers even though Tom had been looking at Bill.   
  
The pet name makes Tom’s head swivel towards the brunette and he glares. “Babe?”   
  
Tall brunette grins and Tom scowls when he sees just how handsome this guy is. Totally Bill’s type; tall and muscular with a shadow of a neatly landscaped beard. “We’re just chatting, no big deal. I didn’t realise he was taken.”   
  
Bill squeaks and let’s out a surprised giggle and Tom nearly chokes on his drink, but recovers fast.   
  
“We’re not—” Bill begins just at the same time as Tom says. “He is, so back off.”   
  
Tom lays a territorial arm around Bill’s waist and tugs him close so Bill is pressed against his side. Bill makes a small noise of surprise but doesn’t protest.   
  
“Alright, alright,” the guy is starting to look pissed. “See you next Tuesday, asshole.” Then he turns to disappear into the throng.   
  
Tom blinks at his retreating back and beside him Bill snorts. “Well you just got told.”  
  
Tom looks at Bill in confusion. “Hey, I thought I was the one that told him?”   
  
Bill tilts his head. “Aw Tomi.”   
  
Bill is still nestled close to Tom and he turns in the curve of Tom’s arm, looping both of his arms around his neck.   
  
“What?” Tom prompts again. “What did he mean?”   
  
Bill laughs, his eyes crinkling at the edges. “He was calling you a cunt, dummy.”   
  
Tom’s mouth opens, affronted and he looks over Bill’s shoulder at the crowd his suitor had faded into. “What an asshole.”   
  
“Mmm,” Bill hums, the light in his eyes dancing in obvious amusement.   
  
Tom takes a pensive sip of his drink.   
  
“So, I’m taken, am I?” Bill says, leaning in close to Tom.   
  
Around them the music rocks the building and LA clubbers keep bumping into them. But all Tom can really focus on is Bill in his arms, Bill who is giving him eyes that tells Tom it’s time to go home.   
  
“Well, yeah,” he replies lamely, shrugging.   
  
“Aw,” Bill grins, looking pleased with himself. “That is so sweet.”   
  
Tom wrinkles his nose but then is distracted as Bill presses the tiniest of kisses to his lips, pulling back before they can attract any unwanted attention.   
  
“Let’s go home,” Bill says, still smiling.   
  
“Uh-huh,” Tom agrees, already looking forward to drunk sex under the stars.   
  
  
_26_  
  
Tom can see Bill is in a whole world of pain. Bill can whine and he can bitch but when it really matters Tom knows that Bill stays silent, preferring to ride out his suffering quietly with as little fuss as he can manage.   
  
Tom had been on his way past their bedroom, ready to hole up in the studio for a day of recording when he’d heard Bill groan and stopped dead. It was low and agonised and Tom swallowed anxiously.   
  
“Bill?” He’d stepped slowly over the threshold of the room.   
  
“‘M fine,” he’d heard Bill mumble.   
  
The next moment he’s flying across the room, leaning over his brother and pushing back sweaty locks of blond from his forehead. “You’re burning up. Fuck, what happened?”   
  
“Dunno,” Bill’s response is slurred and his face is pinched into a tight frown.   
  
“Where does it hurt?” Tom’s hands hover over Bill’s body where it is curled into a tight ball, afraid to make contact in case he causes Bill any more pain. “Tell me, I need to help you.”   
  
Slowly, excruciatingly, Bill’s arms clutch his stomach tight and Tom knows it’s abdominal. “Back, too,” Bill manages through gritted teeth.   
  
“Fuck, was it something you ate? Did you fall over?” Images of Bill lying motionless on a hospital bed flash before Tom’s eyes and his heart hammers. “I’m calling 911.”   
  
“No,” Bill says weakly. “It’ll pass. Just… stay.”   
  
But Tom ignores Bill, instead fishing his phone out his pocket and dialling the emergency number.  With his free hand he presses his palm against Bill’s forehead again and tries not to panic. Bill is on fire, his features contorted as Tom watches him attempt to control the pain he’s in.   
  
“Shh, shh,” he soothes when Bill groans again and swallows thickly. The phone picks up and Tom frantically explains Bill’s predicament, answering the quick-fire questions the operator shoots him.   
  
“They’re sending an ambulance,” Tom says shakily.   
  
“You always… overreact,” Bill opens his eyes and Tom is relieved to see they are smiling, ever so slightly. Then Bill winces and closes them again.   
  
Tom is terrified, terrified that he can’t save Bill from whatever pain he’s in. Instead, he does the only thing he’s always done, stay right beside his twin, carding loving fingers through his hair and bending over the bed to kiss Bill’s hand where it is clasped in his own.   
  
Later, Tom watches as Bill lies in a hospital bed, propped up on about fifteen pillows with his phone outstretched to take a selfie. Tom rolls his eyes.   
  
“Feeling better then?” Tom asks, flipping the page of the GQ magazine he’d found in the waiting room.   
  
“Fine thanks,” Bill chirps, grinning. His eyes are a little dull and his skin is still glowing with sweat but he seems much better. “Who knew something so tiny could hurt that much.”    
  
“Thank fuck it wasn’t something serious,” Tom says, more relieved than he’s letting on that Bill wasn’t diagnosed with anything more sinister.  
  
“Kidney stones are serious!” Bill insists indignantly but when he looks at Tom there is fondness there and he crooks his finger at him to come over.   
  
Tom obliges, willing to indulge his brother as he is still in recovery. When he reaches the edge of the bed he perches next to Bill and smiles. Bill smiles back warmly and Tom’s whole world lights up, so pleased to have his Bill back and healthy again.    
  
“Thank you for looking after me,” Bill says softly. The corners of his eyes are crinkled at the edge and Tom wants to kiss him, but he won’t, not while they’re in public and feeling particularly fond of each other. They shouldn’t risk what they’ve spent so long trying to protect.   
  
“Just doing my duty,” Tom tells him instead, giving his thigh a fleeting squeeze through the hospital blanket.   
  
“No,” Bill says and there is a teasing note in his voice. “You’re doing it ‘cause you love me.”   
  
Tom does, he loves Bill so much it is blinding sometimes, but always worth it. “I do,” he agrees and Bill beams at him.   
  
  
 _27_  
  
“C’mere,” Tom tugs on Bill’s wrist as they wave their final goodbyes to the crew that are just packing the last bits up after their _What If_ video shoot. It was over in hours and Tom is grateful for the extra time they now have that evening, he has plans that involve Bill naked and glistening while he fucks him slowly into the late night hours. It’s been hard to find time alone lately, as they’ve all been cooped up together in the rehearsal space in preparation of their upcoming tour and both of them are a little riled up at the lack of daily contact.   
  
Someone shouts a last goodbye which Bill returns and Tom does not, too eager to find a dark corner of the tropical greenhouse they’d discovered in the centre of Berlin for their shoot. The space is like a jungle, small winding paths criss-cross and wind deep into the expansive building. Tom leads Bill down one of these, shrouding them both in the dense forest foliage and leaving the bustle behind.   
  
It doesn’t matter these days, they’re not as famous as they once were and if the twins disappear for a few minutes, hours, days, it’s ok; no anguished PA is sent into a mad panic trying to locate them.   
  
“What are you doing?” Bill wants to know, following Tom as he is dragged down another sheltered pathway so they are both shadowed by the tropical leaves that cover every inch of the greenhouse. Their crew are far enough away that Tom feels comfortable and he stops suddenly, reeling Bill in close so Bill laughs loudly.   
  
“Shh,” Tom whispers, pressing a finger to Bill’s lips as he listens for their crew’s activities. Nothing close, only the distant sound of the final few packing away the equipment on the other side of the greenhouse. They’re safe here.   
  
“Tom,” Bill whines. “What’s going on?”   
  
Tom turns back to Bill and grins. “Nothing.”   
  
Then he smashes his lips into Bill’s in a biting kiss, so forcefully that Bill stumbles back, clinging onto Tom as his brother ravages him.   
  
Tom pulls back leaving Bill blinking dozily at him. “Wha-?”   
  
“Sorry,” Tom smiles, not looking sorry in the slightest. “Couldn’t wait to touch you. Those tight fucking jeans… and your dancing… Fuck, Bill.”   
  
Bill recovers slightly but he’s feeling weak at the knees. “My dancing turns you on?” Bill feels a mixture of smug and confusion. His dancing is spasmodic and free, he never gives it much thought and it’s hard to work his long legs into anything he’d regard as sexy. It’s much more about feeling the music, he’s always thought.   
  
A spark of pleasure shoots into his belly as he grins and bites his lip, pleased with his twin’s obvious attraction to him right now.   
  
Tom growls and shoves Bill back against a wall of foliage. Tom is watching Bill’s lips. “Everything about you turns me on.”   
  
Then he’s kissing Bill again, heated, hot and heavy and Bill finds himself falling back into the leaves around them, melting away from the world as Tom’s tongue finds his and he moans.   
  
Before they can get too carried away Bill pulls back with a gasp, his breathing now slightly laboured as he tries to control his lust. “Not here.”   
  
Tom grunts as he slips his hands beneath the hem of Bill’s top and digs in his nails making Bill shiver.   
  
“We might get caught,” Bill says. But he is losing the battle, his eyelids fluttering closed as Tom noses into his neck and he feels the graze of his twin’s teeth against the sensitive skin there.   
  
“You always say that,” Tom murmurs between kisses. “We’ll be careful, we always are.”   
  
“This isn’t careful,” Bill says weakly. “And what if there are spiders?”   
  
“I’ll protect you,” Tom promises distractedly as one hand snakes down to squeeze Bill’s ass through his too-tight jeans.   
  
“Nnnn,” Bill groans. His legs tremble and if it wasn’t for Tom he is sure he would collapse against the tiled floor.   
  
It doesn’t take long for Tom to completely turn Bill on, it never does. They’re so fucking good together, they know everything about each other. Tom’s hands and lips all over his body and dirty whispers in his ear telling him how delicious he looks is more than enough to have Bill shaking, forgetting the fact that they are still in public.   
  
Then he opens his eyes and gasps in surprise, momentarily alarmed to see a fat spider sitting on Tom’s shoulder.   
  
“Oh!”   
  
Tom pulls back and looks at Bill in confusion, his own pupils blown wide with desire. “What?”   
  
Then Bill laughs, unable to help himself. “You have a friend.”   
  
To smirks. “You mean my-” Tom begins.   
  
But Bill cuts him off. “Not your dick, you dick.” He reaches up to Tom’s shoulder and let’s the fuzzy black spider crawl onto his palm. “Look.” He holds the creature up for Tom to see.  
  
Immediately, Tom steps back and eyes Bill’s palm warily. “Put it down, Bill.”   
  
“It’s harmless,” Bill coos, bringing his palm up to eye level and admiring the little arachnid.   
  
“It might be poisonous,” Tom shifts on his feet and looks like he wants to run away.   
  
“Don’t be silly, we’re in Germany not Australia,” Bill tuts.    
  
Tom purses his lips, clearly unconvinced. “Get rid of it, please, Bill.”   
  
The spider twitches in Bill’s hand and Tom lets out a squeak. “Kill it!”   
  
Bill chuckles and gently lays the spider on a wide leaf, watching it scuttle off. “You’re the worst vegetarian.”   
  
Tom glares at Bill but he is calmer now that the spider has run away. It doesn’t take long before Bill is cooing into his ear, making his mind go blank and his belly swirl with fresh arousal.   
  
Sometimes, Bill protects Tom, too.  
  
  
 _28_   
  
Tom feels the bed dip and a warm body flop next to his own. He doesn’t open his eyes but smiles into the darkness when he feels soft lips press wet kisses to his cheek and over his temple. They had arrived home a couple of hours ago after another successful US tour and Bill had volunteered to walk the dogs while Tom crashed.   
  
“Love you,” Bill murmurs.   
  
Tom opens his eyes then and reaches up to run his fingers through Bill’s hair sleepily. “Love you, too.”   
  
“Thanks for keeping me sane,” Bill says, smiling at Tom. They’re nose to nose and Tom breathes in deeply, inhaling the smell of Bill, affectionate and loving in his arms. “And safe,” he adds as he bridges the small gap between them and captures Tom’s lips in a kiss that makes Tom’s heart swell.   
  
They exchange lazy kisses until the sun sets and washes the room in an orange glow that makes Bill’s skin look ethereal. Limbs entwined and breathing matched, they drift into slumbers, exhausted and together.   
  
Bill is the best thing that has ever happened to Tom, and as much as he tries to protect his twin from the world, he knows he needs Bill to look after him just as much.


End file.
